Historic Tucson Pump House May Be Demolished

A small public structure in downtown Tucson City that has been listed with the National Register of Historic Places for the last three decades may be demolished later this year.

The 142 square-foot Stone Avenue Underpass Pump House, at the corner of Stone Avenue and Sixth Street, stands as an obstacle to the big Downtown Links project, which is connecting the Barraza-Aviation Parkway to nearby Interstate 10.  

When work initially began on the larger Stone Avenue underpass project in 1935, the Arizona Republic made note of an “elaborate pumping station, containing two pumps,” designed to “clear the roadway of possible flood waters.”

The pump house is solidly built, with reenforced concrete walls and roof.  Its architecture is distinguished by a decorative arching pattern to the top of the structure’s exterior walls.

The adjacent underpass itself was built to allow for two lanes of traffic, tunneling underneath a Southern Pacific rail line.

Now officials with the City of Tucson Department of Transportation & Mobility say plans call for the construction of a new pedestrian and bicycle bridge that will be partly built at the site of the pump house.

But, aware of the small structure’s historic significance, the City of Tucson has issued a notice offering anyone who is interested the chance to save the building by both purchasing and removing it.

If no bids for the building are received or accepted by August, the Tucson City Council is expected to approve a motion to raze the structure.

The larger Downtown Links project is set for completion during the first quarter of 2023 and includes the construction of four new bridges as well as multi-use paths.

​By Garry Boulard

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